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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The castle of Sermaizey, located in Laives in Saône-et-Loire, appears on a plan of the 15th century as an ensemble composed of a house and a round tower with a conical roof. Today, the body of the western house remains mainly, marked by a western facade pierced by regular openings and a tower of hexagonal staircase backed by the eastern facade. A square semi-outbuilding tower, once home to a chapel dedicated to the Virgin, completes the whole, while a circular pigeon house stands nearby.

The history of the castle dates back to at least the 15th century, although its first owner remains unknown. In 1590, the seigneury belonged to François-Abraham Nyod, before being acquired in 1628 by Louis Mercier, whose family expanded the estate. After the extinction of the Mercier in 1683, the fief changed hands several times, notably passing to the Marquis of Apcher in the late eighteenth century, before being confiscated during the Revolution. The dovecote collapsed in 2007, suffering from a severe winter and a maintenance defect.

Architecturally, the castle mixes medieval elements (windows in the middle, bas-reliefs religious) and reshuffles of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, such as the staircase turret with bays in braid. Ranked a historic monument in 1947 for its facades and roofs, there remains a private property not open to the public. The coat of arms of the d'Apcher family, associated with the castle, evoke a castle with three towers and hallesbardes, symbols of their lineage.

Historical sources also refer to local bibliographical references, such as L. Niepce (1877) or J.-L. Bailly (1907), which document the history of the canton of Sennecey-le-Grand and Laives. The castle thus illustrates the evolution of a Burgundy seigneury, between architectural transformations and changes of owners, reflecting the political and social upheavals of the region.

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